1. Chewing gum in MRT - if you chew gum in MRT you will be severly fine as some people jammed the gum on the door causing it to malfunction. Started by LKY almost 20 years ago and so far no one dares to over turn the mandate.
2. Drinking water in MRT- if you drink water in the train, you can be fined up to $500.
3. Town council bill default - you can go to jail if you owe too many months of town council bill. After discharge, still have to pay up - this despite the town council surplus has hit $2 billion and counting.
4. Maintenance default for divorced - if you default on two months of maintenance for your previous family, you can be hauled to court of which you can go to jail if you still refuse to pay.
5. Charging handphone at MRT station - if you charge your phone ilkegally at a MRT station socket, you can be fined in court. Someone was fined last year for doing that while she charged her phone in a MRT station power socket. Most rìdiculous and lacking in compassion.
6. Drinking beer in public area - a absurd law is going to be passed that disallows beer drinking after 10.30pm in the public area. Shops are also banned from selling alcohol after that hour. Almost N Korea style minus the cold up north.
7. One-man protest is illegal - freedom of speech is so severely curtailed that you can't make a political statement publicly and you can be hauled to court even if its done as a solo effort.
8. Criticism of political leaders - there is little tolerance when the public criticise political leaders openly. Lawsuits will be thrown at the offender. Defamation lawsuit is such a popular dirty word in Singapore nowadays. When they can't defend themselves well enough, they will sue.
9. Non-schooling of children - you can be hauled to court if you don't admit your school-going children to primary school education. However, so far, no one is publicly charged in court for that offence.
10. Fined for small mistake in accounting - this is applicable to opposition party MPs or activists who are scritinised for the simplest of mistakes in filing compulsory tax returns so that they can be hauled to court for mismanagement.
Gilbert Goh
*Article first appeared on https://www.facebook.com/goh.gilbert/posts/10153607593823975